Name
by Aria Saralyn
Summary: Like any other couple expecting their first child, they talked about baby names. But they never could agree.
1. A Child's Decision

**Author's Note:** Thank you to everybody who reviewed _Truth_! I received a lot more feedback than I expected, and I appreciate it all so much!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Star Wars -- it belongs to George Lucas. I do not own the song _Lisa_, even though I have changed some of it to fit my purposes. It belongs to Ellis and Wince Coles.

**Name**

"_A child's life is like a piece of paper on which every person leaves a mark." -- Chinese Proverb_

**Chapter One: A Child's Decision**

Eight-year-old Anakin Skywalker dashed across Tatooine's hot surface to the top of the cliff that overlooked Beggar's Canyon. Watto had let him leave the shop early today, and he intended to take advantage of the free time to visit a friend.

Anakin knew him only as Jonlan. An old, grizzled man, Jonlan lived in a small shed only a few meters from the edge of the cliff. He was a hermit, a slightly mad recluse who shied away from contact with anyone.

Anyone, that is, except Anakin.

The boy found the old man in their favourite spot, sitting with his legs over the edge of the cliff, staring off into the distance. Anakin was careful to make small noises as he approached. He didn't want to scare Jonlan and have him fall over the edge. The drop to the floor of the canyon was the deepest here for kilometers in either direction, and Jonlan startled worse than a Sandperson.

Jonlan smiled as Anakin sat beside him, dangling his own legs over the side of the cliff. "Good afternoon, young one." His voice, once rough with disuse, was now smooth and steady.

"Hi, Jonlan. How was your day?" Anakin looked up at him.

"The same as ever." Jonlan glanced down at the boy. He had never before found pleasure in companionship of any kind, but Anakin was a special child, and Jonlan found himself looking forward to his visits. "I suppose you wish me to sing again?" he asked the expectant boy.

Anakin gave him a grin the could charm the birds out of the trees. He had been delighted to discover Jonlan's buried talent, and despite the hermit's reluctant demeanor, Anakin knew it was an act. Jonlan enjoyed singing to him as much as Anakin enjoyed listening. "If you don't mind."

Jonlan chuckled low in his throat. "What do you want to hear?" Anakin had quickly exhausted Jonlan's small repertoire of ballads.

Anakin arched a brow at him. "What do you think I want to hear?"

The old man groaned. "Again?"

Anakin's grin turned slightly apologetic. "Sorry. But I love it!"

Jonlan heaved a sigh, more for show than out of actual weariness, gave his young friend a wry smile, and began to sing.

"_Each time I go to the bar down on the corner,_

_I see that same old man sitting there._

_He always takes his glass and comes shuffling on over_

_In hopes that he can talk me into buying him a beer._

_He always comes and sits down at my table,_

_And I can tell he's ready to begin_

_For he takes a sip and he wipes his lips and as soon as he is able_

_He dries his eyes and tells me that same story once again._

_'Mister, did I tell you about my Leia?_

_How I lost her forty years ago?_

_If I ever saw her now I wouldn't even know her,_

_But I still love my darling Leia so._

_I can't tell you, son, how I adored her._

_Cared for her like you would not believe. _

_Oh, I can't recall the names of all the places that I showed her;_

_Bought her things she didn't even need._

_But I still remember just how much I loved her._

_To me, she was the sweetest thing alive._

_But that old judge in his wisdom_

_Told me I couldn't keep her,_

_So they took her away from me when she was only five._

_Mister, did I tell you about my Leia?_

_How her mom and I became divorced?_

_Oh, that woman lied and said I wasn't fit to be a father._

_Now Leia doesn't know me anymore._

_Mister, did I tell you about my Leia?'"_

By the time Jonlan finished, Anakin had a faraway look in his sky-blue eyes. Jonlan had learned that the boy was a dreamer, and he waited patiently for him to snap out of his reverie.

"Jonlan, I've been thinking." Anakin still stared out over the distant horizon, looking at nothing yet somehow seeing everything, and his voice held a maturity that made him sound wise beyond his years.

"About anything in particular?"

"Yes." Unconsciously, Anakin straightened his spine. "I've decided that if I ever have a daughter, I'm going to name her Leia," he announced firmly.

Was it normal for ordinary eight-year-old boys to think about the names of their future children? Jonlan hadn't spent enough time around children to be sure. But then, he reflected, he doubted Anakin would ever be considered a _normal_ or _ordinary_ anything.

"What made you decide that, now?"

"I just --" Anakin frowned slightly. "I think I just want a Leia to have her dad. And," he added, brightening, "it's beautiful! The name, I mean. I _love_ it! It sounds like the name of an angel. Or a princess. It's – I don't know – graceful, and strong, and . . . well, it just _feels_ right."

Uncertain as to how he was supposed to respond to such an passionate explanation, Jonlan chose to change the subject. "I see. So how has your mother been?"

They talked well into the evening. As Tatooine's second sun sank in the sky, Anakin reluctantly said goodbye and began the trek back to Mos Espa. Jonaln watched him go, his mind drifting back to their earlier discussion about the song that had quickly become young Anakin's favourite and the name that had etched itself onto his heart. Suddenly, Jonlan was thoroughly convinced that Anakin would remember both for the rest of his life. That thought left him content. It seemed that his lonely existence had left a small mark in the history of the galaxy.

And perhaps, he allowed himself to imagine, a rather large mark in the heart of a very special young boy who, he had no doubt, would one day soar among the stars.


	2. A Man's Suggestion

**Chapter Two: A Man's Suggestion**

Pregnancy suited Padmé, Anakin thought. She seemed to glow from the inside out, and she projected an inner serenity Anakin envied.

He'd give anything for peace of mind like that.

She caught him staring and smiled, relaxed and calm. Happy. "What are you thinking?"

He opened his arms, and she came to him, her rounded belly soft against his hard abdominal muscles. "I'm thinking that you'll make a wonderful mother."

She rested her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes. "Really?"

"Of course."

"You weren't brooding about your dreams?"

She knew him too well. Involuntarily, his arms tightened around her. "I _will_ save you, Padmé. There is nothing to worry about."

An approving smile curved her lips upward. "That's the attitude I like to hear." She kissed him lightly. "Guess what?"

"What?"

"I've been thinking, too."

Anakin chuckled. "Good to know."

Padmé smacked his chest. "Are you teasing me?" she demanded.

"Never."

"If you say so." She giggled. "So, do you want to know what I was thinking about?"

"Sure."

She looked up into his eyes. "I was thinking about Kieran and Asher."

Anakin racked his memory. Who were Kieran and Asher? Unable to come up with any faces to match the names, he gave in and, hoping he wasn't supposed to know who they were, asked, "Who are Kieran and Asher?"

She gazed at him slyly. "Well, technically, they aren't _whos_. They're _whats_."

Anakin just stared at her, uncomprehending.

She laughed outright. "They're names, Anakin. Baby names. I'm trying to decide which one I like better."

"Oh!" Understanding dawned, and he considered that for a moment. "There's just one thing I need to point out about that."

She raised her chin, eyes narrowing suspiciously. "And what, pray tell, would that be?"

He looked innocently back at her. "Those are boys' names."

"Oh, right." Padmé relaxed again, her amusement showing. "You think it's a girl."

"And you are dead set on turning her into a boy."

She leaned back in his arms to look him full in the face. "Alright, smart guy, say it's a girl. Have you thought about names for her?"

He gave her a cocky grin. "I don't need to to."

"Really? And why not?"

"Because I already know what to name her. I've known since before I even met you."

That piqued her curiosity. "How?"

Anakin shrugged. "There was an old man on Tatooine who used to sing to me. My favourite song was about a little girl. I decided as a child that if I ever had a daughter, I would name her after that little girl."

She was intrigued now. "What was the name?"

Anakin hesitated. He hadn't told anyone about this particular dream since the idea had first come to him fifteen years ago. Now that the time to share was here, it somehow seemed far too intimate to share. That was ridiculous, though. If he didn't tell Padmé, this dream would never become reality.

He took a deep breath. "Leia."

Anakin watched Padmé's face carefully, looking for the sheer joy he was sure she would experience at the discovery of such a perfect name for the baby.

Instead, her face fell. A cold, hollow pit formed in the bottom of Anakin's stomach.

"Oh, Ani . . ." Padmé bit her lower lip in distress. "I realize how much that name means to you, but . . ."

But. There was always a _but_.

Anakin hated _buts_.

"But in the original language of Naboo, _leia_ means _tragedy_. I can't name my child Tragedy, Anakin! Please don't pressure me to do it, because I _can't_!" Her eyes glistened with unshed tears. "You understand, don't you, Anakin?"

He stepped back from their embrace and turned his back to her. "Yeah. Yes, of course I understand."

There was a pause. Anakin didn't look at Padmé.

"I'm going to spend the night at the Temple. I don't want Obi-Wan or Master Yoda to get suspicious."

He left.

No, he ranted inwardly as he strode swiftly away from 500 Republica, he most certainly did _not_ understand! Who _cared_ what the name _meant_? It was _right_. It _felt_ right, it _sounded_ right. How could she not _see_ that?

He slept even more fitfully than usual.


	3. A Mother's Choice

**Chapter Three: A Mother's Choice**

Padmé was no stranger to pain. She had suffered the pain of knowing that because of their duties, she and her Jedi love could never have the life together that they had always dreamed of. She had survived having her back torn to ribbons by a nexu – Force only knew what kind of filth it had had on its claws, and the battle that had followed had all put poured sand into the open wounds. Not the most pleasant experience.

Yes, Padmé knew pain all too well.

Yet never, not even in her harshest nightmares, had she known agony like what was assaulting her now.

Childbirth alone would have been bad enough. Add the heartbreak that cleaved her soul in two, and her desire to live was shattered.

She was not as strong as everyone thought. Not even the twins she distinctly remembered Obi-Wan telling her she would bear were enough to anchor her to the land of the living.

She was tired of pain. She wanted to leave it behind forever.

She wanted Anakin by her side.

If she couldn't have one, she would have the other.

Anakin . . . he should be here! It should be him sitting beside her, holding her hand, encouraging her. Not Obi-Wan.

Another contraction hit, and Padmé cried out. What had happened to them? Only last week they had been so happy, and now their lives had fallen completely apart. What had they done to deserve such tragedy?

Tragedy.

Leia.

She clenched Obi-Wan's hand. She had to tell him. She had to do this for Anakin.

"Anakin thinks it's a girl . . ."

Obi-Wan tried to soothe her, but she would have none of it. "If it's a girl . . ."

Another contraction hit. Padmé moaned.

"If it's a girl . . . name her Leia."

There. She had done it.

Leia. Tragedy. It seemed to fit, somehow.

The surgical droid at her feet came to stand beside Obi-Wan, holding a newborn so small Padmé doubted the child's tiny fist would close fully around Anakin's forefinger. "It's a boy," the droid said softly.

Padmé reached for her son, but had the strength to do nothing but touch his angelic face with her fingertips.

He needed a name. She had spent months thinking of boys' name, sure her child would be male, but now that the time to bestow one on her firstborn had come, they all seemed inadequate.

She thought of Anakin, as the boy she had met, and as the man she had married.

And suddenly, she knew what to name their son.

Luke.

It meant hope, or brightness. It was what Anakin had been.

"Luke . . ." she whispered.

Such a simple word, yet it carried the universe. Her universe. Sometimes the simplest things, Padmé reflected, held the most meaning.

Another droid approached, another beautiful infant in its arms. "It's a girl," it said.

Padmé tried to smile. Anakin had his Leia. "Leia . . ." she breathed as her eyes met her daughter's.

And then both children were gone. Taken from their mother's side.

Forever.

Not long after that, their mother was gone, too.

And so the Skywalker twins were named for their father: Luke, for what he had been, and Leia, for what he was.


	4. A Father's Realization

**Chapter Four: A Father's Realization**

Vader stalked soundlessly into the shadows where his son was attempting to hide. Vader would have been perfectly happy to end the chase now, just walk away and let the boy escape. His life, he now knew, was not the life he wanted for his son.

But Sidious was here and would kill him if he pulled such a stunt.

Literally.

So Vader had no choice but to follow Luke under the platform in the Death Star's throne room.

_Second_ Death Star, to be precise. Luke had blown up the first one, a feat that filled Vader with paternal pride whenever he thought about it.

A feeling of slight alarm entered Vader's mind, and he grinned under his mask. Luke had just realized how close his father really was to his chosen hiding place. Vader reached for his son's mind, lightly skimming the surface thoughts. He nearly laughed out loud when he found Luke's firm conviction that _no one_ as large and solid as Vader was had _any_ right to move so silently.

Vader stopped. "You cannot hide forever, Luke," he informed the boy. He felt the curses running through Luke's head as he scrambled for his mental barriers, and had a strong, decidedly odd urge to tell him to watch his language.

"I will not fight you."

Vader wished he could say the same thing. For Sidious's benefit, hoping Luke wouldn't listen, he said, "Give yourself to the Dark Side. It is the only way you can save your friends."

Still in contact with his son's mind, Vader was hit with a fierce sense of protectiveness. "Your feelings for them are strong," he commented. "Especially for . . ."

He stopped as the truth left him feeling as though he'd been punched in the stomach. If not for the mechanical respiratory system, he would have forgotten to breathe.

". . . your _sister_!" Vader breathed, disbelieving. "So . . . you have a twin sister."

Vader needed to sit. For once, he was grateful for the mechanical legs that kept him from collapsing in shock. He continued to talk as his mind raced, frantically trying to process this new information.

He had believed for years he had killed Padmé and baby Leia. He had always called her Leia in his mind. He'd been so sure the child was a girl. Luke had been a welcome gift, a beacon of light in his dreary existence, and he loved his son to distraction – but ever since he had found him, he had wondered why he had sensed a girl that one time he had used to Force to touch Padmé's swollen abdomen.

Now he knew.

He still wasn't used to having _one_ child.

_This is a fine family chat_, Sidious hissed angrily into Vader's mind. _Will you hurry up and kill the whelp? We can deal with the girl later._

Vader threw the other Sith Lord out of his head. Force, he hated Sidious!

But, like the good little apprentice he tried to appear to Sidious to be, he complied.

"If _you_ will not turn to the Dark Side, then perhaps _she_ will."

_That_ got the boy's attention. Too much so. The next thing Vader knew, he was on the floor, missing a hand, and Sidious was telling Luke to kill him.

_A little too much like Dooku and myself for my peace of mind._

_I wonder what Padmé named our daughter . . ._

Vader came back to reality with a vicious jolt. Did Luke actually do what Vader thought he did?

The boy hadn't really just _thrown away his lightsaber?!_

Vader could practically hear Obi-Wan banging his head against a wall in frustration.

_That weapon is your _life_, Luke! Why in all the Corellian hells are you losing it _on purpose?!

Especially _when you're defying Sidious?!_

Vader winced as Luke was hit by Sidious's Force lightning, yet still he pulled himself up to stand by Sidious's side.

"Father . . . please . . . help me . . ."

Vader longed to do as the boy asked. But he was so weak – the loss of his hand had sent an unpleasant backlash through the rest of his circuitry . . .

That didn't matter. Luke had trusted in him, believed in him, loved him, despite everything. He would not, _could_ not, let that kind of loyalty and devotion go. He could not let his son lose faith in him, for both their sakes.

Not certain how he managed to do so in his weakened state – only knowing it must be done – Vader picked Sidious up and threw him down the elevator shaft.

Not before, however, Sidious used the lightning still sparking from his fingertips to short out the life-support systems in Vader's suit.

Luke, his son, his precious child, pulled his father back from the rail, but neither was strong enough to support their combined weight. Luke and Anakin lay side by side, dazed.

Anakin. Yes, Anakin was back. Somewhat older, definitely wiser, and extremely claustrophobic, but he was back.

Somehow, Luke managed to get them both to the docking bay, but Anakin knew there was no time. He made Luke stop and take off the mask. The boy was hell-bent on saving his life, but Anakin knew, and told his son, that there would be no death-defying miracles for him. Not this time.

The boy still wouldn't leave. Anakin loved him all the more for it.

Yet even as he lay dying, he couldn't forget the daughter whose name he didn't even know. Luke, Force bless him, made Anakin feel whole, complete in ways he never could have imagined, but he also loved his newly-found daughter, whomever she might be . . .

His eyes focused on Luke for the last time, and he was overwhlemed with love for his son.

And then Obi-Wan was by his side as Anakin, once again young and whole, stood in a blazing white light.

And once again, everything was right in the universe.

Obi-Wan and Yoda took him to Endor, where a large celebration was going on. Anakin watched as Luke caught sight of his two teachers, and then saw the look of sadness and wonder that crossed his face as he saw his father, unmasked, unscarred, and unbroken. He looked like he wanted to say something, but a girl wrapped her arms around him then, and urged him to join the festivities. Anakin sent Luke a mental wave of love, gratitude and joy, then turned to Obi-Wan.

"That's her, isn't it?" he said, his voice low. "That's my daughter."

Obi-Wan nodded. "Yes. Her name is Leia."

_Leia._ Anakin smiled. _My Leia._

_Wait a minute . . . Leia, as in Princess of Alderaan?_ The heavy feeling of dread that settled in his nonexistent stomach confirmed his suspicions. _Oh no . . . she's going to _hate_ me . . ._


	5. A Daughter's Acceptance

**Chapter Five: A Daughter's Acceptance**

Leia Organa Solo smiled as she felt her third child shift restlessly inside her rapidly expanding belly. The baby was due in a month and a half, and she and Han had yet to decide upon a name they both liked.

Her MD droid told her it was a boy, so Leia now sat in the fresh twilight air, mulling over all the boys' names she could think of, and discarding each.

_Naming the twins hadn't been this hard!_ Leia sighed, frustrated, and went inside to comm her brother. She needed to vent.

Luke answered promptly, and Leia spelled out her problem. He was silent for a moment, then said, "Do you ever wonder how Mother came up with_ our_ names?"

Startled by the change of topic, Leia replied, "Was she even the one who _gave _us our names?"

Luke nodded. "Ben mentioned it once, during one of the rare times I got to talk to him without having to deal with one crisis or another. And he said that when she named us, something happened in the Force. He said it was like the Force _approved_ of our names, or something. So just let your feelings guide you, Leia, and the Force will show you the perfect name."

"I've _been_ trusting my feelings, Luke. My feelings are saying _no_ to every name I can think of!"

"Stop trying so hard. Just relax. You'll find it when the time is right. In the meantime, and while we're on the topic of baby names, come on over here. I've found a recording in Artoo's databanks you might like to see."

Leia agreed with some trepidation. She knew R2-D2 and C-3PO had once belonged to her father, and she was thankful that 3PO, who lived with her, had no memory of him. R2, however, had a seemingly unlimited store of recordings for Luke to sift through. After watching a few select ones, and learning of her father's past as a bright, talented child slave on Tatooine a few years ago, Leia was almost ready to forgive him.

Almost.

Luke greeted her enthusiastically and ushered her into his living room. He poured each of them a glass of icy lemonade, then sat beside her on the couch. R2-D2 stood in front of them, lights blinking.

"There are actually two recordings I want to show you," Luke told her. "The first is when Father found out Mother was pregnant. The second is a few days later." He paused, then continued softly, "They're actually dated about two weeks before we were born."

Leia heard what Luke didn't say. _Two weeks before the rise of the Empire._

_Two weeks before the emergence of Darth Vader._

She nodded. "Okay."

R2-D2's holoprojector switched on, and Leia watched as her young parents embraced.

"_Wait . . . did you say _us_?"_

"_I'm . . . Ani, I'm _pregnant_ . . . "_

"_. . . That is . . . _wonderful_ . . . Padmé – that's_ wonderful_. How long have you known?"_

"_What are we going to _do_?"_

"_We're going to be happy, that's what we're going to do. And we're going to be_ together_. All _three _of us. Oh, Padmé, this is the happiest day of my life!"_

"_But --"_

"_No. No buts. No worries. You worry too much as it is."_

"_I have to, because you never worry at all."_

The recording ended. "They didn't know they were having twins," Leia commented, trying to ignore the effect seeing her parents so young and happy was having on her.

"No, they didn't, Luke agreed, allowing her to pretend she wasn't reacting to the scene. He took a sip of lemonade. "Ready for the second one?"

As ready as I'll ever be, Leia thought, and nodded. She sipped her own drink as R2's holoprojector started up again.

"_They're names, Anakin. Baby names. I'm trying to decide which one I like better."_

"_Oh! There's just one thing I need to point out about that." _

"_And what, pray tell, would that be?"_

"_Those are boys' names."_

"_Oh, right. You think it's a girl."_

As the recording continued, Leia's mind reeled. Her father had expected a girl? He had expected _her_? What had he thought when he found out about Luke? And he hadn't even suspected twins. What had he thought when he discovered that little secret?

She turned her attention back in time to catch the full effect of the end of the recording.

"_What was the name?"_

"_Leia."_

R2 switched the holoprojector off as Leia sank back against her brother's couch, stunned. "_He_ named me," she breathed in shock. "My name was _his_ idea." And, for the first time, she saw her father as a loving husband, excited over the imposing birth of his child -- or children, as the case may be. She saw him as human, vulnerable and fallible, and realized that Luke had been right when her told her of Darth Vader's tortured existence.

"It sure seems that way." Luke watched as she placed a hand on her swollen belly. "Are you okay?"

"Fine." A faraway looked entered her eyes. "Anakin," she mused. "That's a nice name, don't you think? It's strong; passionate. And . . ." She smiled as an inner warmth enveloped her. "The Force likes it."

Luke's grin was larger than she'd ever seen it. "You've finally done it, Leia. You've forgiven him."

Her own smile grew as she looked up at him. "Yes," she replied, knowing it was completely true and feeling at peace for the first time in years. "I have."

"Han is going to be disappointed. He was really holding out for a Junior."

Leia snorted. "That option isn't, never has been, and never will be, even on the table."

Luke just laughed.

A couple of hours later, as Leia returned to her own home, she again touched her abdomen. "You have a wonderful namesake, my little Anakin," she said softly, needing to say something about the acceptance she now felt for her father. "He was the greatest Jedi ever known, and even over twenty years on the Dark Side could not diminish the unconditional love he bestowed upon his family." She paused, tears in her eyes. "Do not misunderstand me – he was far from perfect. But I realize now that some of the traits I once hated in him are that same qualities I admire in others; determination, strength, persistence, loyalty. I forgive him his mistakes. I take pride in his heroics. He is my father, and I love him with all my heart, the way I know he loved me. And you know, I think I'm gong to change my name. From now on, I'm Leia Skywalker Organa Solo."

Leia wiped her eyes, and thought she saw a flash of golden-brown curls, cerulean eyes, and a grateful, loving smile beside her. When she turned to look, however, there was no one there.

Not _physically_ there, Leia amended later as she heard a voice she knew well speak a line from a nearly-forgotten ballad into her her mind.

_I still love my darling Leia so . . ._

**End**


End file.
